NORTH MIAMI BEACH (CBS4) – Striking new surveillance tape shows how close a 50-year-old 7-Eleven Store clerk came to losing his life early Wednesday morning as a handgun is held to his neck by a robber.

“I was so scared about it,” says clerk Edner Leblanc in an exclusive interview with CBS4’s Peter D’Oench.

It is unusual for 7-Eleven store clerks to speak out on camera after such crimes because of a company policy that discourages that but Leblanc spoke with CBS4 because he hopes his comments will lead to the capture of the two men.

He says they are both 20 to 26 years old and are short. They are about five foot, four inches tall each.

The surveillance tape shows the men racing into the store just before 3:15 last Wednesday morning on West Dixie Highway and Northeast 151st Street. They are dressed in black and are wearing masks and waving their handguns.

“They told me to open the cash register for them,” said Leblanc. “I had to do it many times as the guy was holding a gun to my neck until I could open it. They grabbed the money and left the store,” he said.

The surveillance video captures one gunman holding his handgun to Leblanc’s neck for more than 30 seconds. They are in the store for less than two minutes and leave with $60, according to a police report.

Anyone with information is urged to call Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at (305) 471-TIPS.

Peter D'Oench is a reporter for CBS4 News. He came to CBS4 from WKRN in Nashville.
D'Oench was an award-winning member of the WPLG News Team as a reporter from 1989 – 2004. In addition, he was a producer for news, special projects and...